Nomad Base Station Stand: Two Powerful Charging Coils in a Sleek, Compact Stand

Last year it seemed as if Nomad was releasing a new product every week or two. In fact, over the last two or three years, the company’s catalog has exploded in size with amazing, premium mobile device accessories. Their first new release of 2020 is the Nomad Base Station Stand; it looks great and is definitely worth checking out.

I’ve previously reviewed a number of Nomad’s wireless charging stands. These include the Nomad Base Station Apple Watch Edition and the Nomad Base Station Hub Edition. Each of these is a phenomenal wireless charger and each serves a slightly different purpose and use scenario. The new Nomad Base Station Stand is a great addition to their portfolio. It’s a bit more limited than some of their other wireless charging stands, but it fills a niche that needed to be filled.

Nomad describes the new offering this way:

Nomad Base Station Stand integrates powerful wireless charging with a refined, compact design suited for any home or workspace. Two high power coils provide wireless power to your iPhone, AirPods Pro, wireless-enabled AirPods, or any other Qi-compatible device. The angled charging surface holds your device at a convenient angle to view the screen, whether horizontally or vertically.

The charger looks like a simple desktop wireless charger the likes of which can be found on Amazon for just a few dollars. That is where the similarities end however since this charger, unlike those inexpensive ones, is a premium product for those who demand quality.

Made from an aluminum chassis with a padded leather surface, it not only looks great but, thanks to the leather and padding on the charging surface, it also protects your device while charging. On the bottom, there are no-slip rubber feet that keep the charger in place.

On the front, there’s a small LED charging indicator that lights up whenever there is a device placed on the charger and receiving power. An ambient light sensor dims the LED at night so it won’t disturb you.

On the back, there is a USB-C input for charging. The device ships with an 18W power adapter and a 2m USB – A to USB – C cable. In other words, this is a complete kit right out of the box and all you need to do is add the device you’re looking to wirelessly charge. (I’m thrilled to see Nomad moving to a universal charging input like USB-C.)

What makes this charger different is not only the quality materials and workmanship but the fact that it has two coils delivering 10W of power per coil. Why does this matter? Quite simply, convenience. If you’ve used wireless chargers previously you may have discovered that unless your device is placed in the perfect position it may look like it’s receiving a charge but it isn’t. How many times did you think you had charged your phone overnight only to find that it had not been seated correctly and only had 15% of its charge remaining? By including two different coils each delivering 10W of power per coil, this charger doesn’t have the same dead spots as those cheap ones.

You can place your phone in either a portrait or landscape position and it will receive a charge without fail. It will also charge your AirPods or your AirPods Pro so long as you’re using a wireless charging case. In fact, because this charger is Qi-certified, you can use it with any number of devices that are Qi-enabled for wireless charging. Nomad notes that other wall adapters will also work but that the 18W output offer3d by the included adapter is the minimum output you’ll need if you are looking for the fastest possible charging speeds.

Sadly, you won’t be able to charge your Apple Watch. That’s not Nomad’s fault, however, since Apple continues to insist on a unique charging system for their watch. Nomad does, however, offer a Base Station that will also charge your Apple Watch. You can check out our review on the site.

Base Station Hub Edition (pictured above) charges multiple devices. The new Base Station Stand is a dedicated single charger.

What you won’t find on the Base Station Stand is an input that allows you to connect an additional cable and charge a second device simultaneously. I suspect this was done to keep the stand and the power adapter small enough to pack when heading out on a trip. Thankfully, Nomad also offers Base Stations that can deliver power to additional devices. If you need to charge two or three devices at once you might check those out. Since I only charge my Apple Watch at night, the Base Station Stand is a perfect fit for either my home or work office and, thanks to its refined good looks, it would also fit nicely into the kitchen or living room.

Regardless of where you need to charge your devices, the new Nomad Base Station Stand is a terrific addition to Nomad’s growing list of wireless chargers. We have one on the way for review and will have much more to say about it soon. In the meantime, you can check it out here.

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About the Author

Having a father who was heavily involved in early laser and fiber-optical research, Dan grew up surrounded by technology and gadgets. Dan’s father brought home one of the very first video games when he was young and Dan remembers seeing a “pre-release” touchtone phone. (When he asked his father what the “#” and “*” buttons were his dad said, “Some day, far in the future, we’ll have some use for them.”)
Technology seemed to be in Dan’s blood but at some point he took a different path and ended up in the clergy. His passion for technology and gadgets never left him.
Dan is married to Raina Goldberg who is also an avid user of Apple products. They live in New Jersey with their golden doodle Nava.

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